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Topeka woman still fighting flesh-eating bacteria two months later

Two months after she first spoke to 41 Action News, a Topeka woman continues to undergo surgery related to flesh-eating bacteria she contracted earlier this year.

TOPEKA, Kan. — Nearly four months have passed since the day Tamara Owsley’s life changed forever.

This past Memorial Day, the 32-year-old mother was bitten by a spider while playing with her children.

Days passed and the bite only got worse.

Before rushing to get help and meeting with doctors, Owsley said her arm swelled to two to three times its normal size.

She later learned she had been infected with necrotizing fasciitis, a rare disease commonly called “flesh-eating bacteria.”

On Thursday, Owsley spoke with 41 Action News at a park in Topeka not far from her home.

“It’s just a nightmare. That’s all I can say about it,” she said. “It’s like an emotional roller coaster and stressful on everybody.”

While Owsley wore a t-shirt, the scars on her body could easily be seen.

From surgical lines on her chest and near her back to the areas missing on the front of her left arm, Owsley said the marks from the disease were still tough for her to see.

“I don’t like to look at my arm. I just don’t,” she said. “My whole arm is numb. I can’t feel nothing on the arm.”

In total, Owsley has undergone 16 surgeries since she first went into the emergency room at the University of Kansas Hospital.

After spending 42 days at the facility, she said the disease has led to challenges every day.

“The Tammy before this happened has died and there’s a new Tammy here that’s just relearning everything,” she said. “I can’t do anything I used to do. I can’t even do my own hair. I can’t put my hair up. I can’t lift my arm up.”

The difficulties with her recovery and coming to grips with the aftermath of the infection have left her feeling hopeless at times over the past few weeks.